New Forums rules: cranks, one-trick ponies

The following rules clarify existing Cyburbia Forums policy.

2.11 One-trick ponies
The board is not intended to furnish users with a forum for single-mindedly promoting their personal agenda. We reserve the right to ask users to limit postings on a particular topic, or to refrain from posting on such topics altogether.

2.12 Cranks
Users that consistently exhibiit crank-like or kook-like behavior, posting about conspiracy and tinfoil hat theories, ludicrous beliefs, and so on, may be suspended or banned.

I'm very disturbed by these new rules in that I feel their application might be very unfairly focused. In particular, the definition of "single-mindedly promoting their personal agenda" is likely to be a shape-shifter, now, isn't it? And as for cranks, at what point does the mere annoying become a crank? This is very important to make clear.

Crank: see the Wikipedia link referenced. Also see this thread for an example. There were others that have been "disappeared" - PM me if you want an example or two.

Promotion of an agenda: some other boards have a similar rule. Here's a few examples:

Straight Dope Message BoardThe board is not intended to furnish you with a forum for promoting your personal agenda. We reserve the right to ask you to limit postings on a particular topic, or to refrain from posting on such topics altogether.

Science ForumsConspiracy to promote an agenda not found to be in the best interest of ScienceForums.net is prohibited.

Catholic AnswersDo not view the discussion area as a vehicle for single-mindedly promoting an agenda.

That doesn't mean "don't express an opinion we don't like." It means "don't join the board just to express an opinion over and over and over and over again, with an obsessive, missonary-like zeal, while discussing little else."

Think of our recently-banned friend Clemson Grad, or the anti-circumcision zealots that have been banned from many other boards.

I guess my concern is that I've seen some threads as of late that have a lot of regulars here whining and being fairly rude to the poster, and I'd hope that this sort of rule wouldn't be applied as a tool to stamp out those threads entirely.

I guess my concern is that I've seen some threads as of late that have a lot of regulars here whining and being fairly rude to the poster, and I'd hope that this sort of rule wouldn't be applied as a tool to stamp out those threads entirely.

A good example of single-minded promoting an agenda can be found on another forum I post to, Edumnds.com (the car site). The Elantra board is frequented by a user called germancarfan who claims to own an Elantra, but uses every opportunity to extoll the virtues of Volkswagens. He posts all kinds of facts, figures, specs, and pics of Volkswagens in boards for other vehicles such as my beloved Elantra.

I happen to have been part of a discussion with a top level county official about an area near DIA in the early 1990's regarding a NIH/CDC/USAMRMC laboratory (like the one in Ft. Detrick Maryland) planned for an underground facility. I wonder if it got built....hmmm......

Otherwise, I like the new rules......

“The way of acquiescence leads to moral and spiritual suicide. The way of violence leads to bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers. But, the way of non-violence leads to redemption and the creation of the beloved community.”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
- See more at: http://www.thekingcenter.org/king-ph....r7W02j3S.dpuf

The NEVERENDING retail development in the San Luis Obispo/Central Coast area thread will be the ONLY thread where the discussion of retail development in San Luis Obispo and the California Central Coast area will be allowed. Posts in other threads where retail development in the SLO/CC area (this includes, but is not limited to Santa Barbara, Pismo Beach, Morro Bay, Cambria, Paso Robles, and San Simeon) are mentioned will be moved to the Neverending SLO/CC thread.

The thread is not intended to stifle discussion in other threads and forums regarding general planning and development issues in the SLO/CC area by professional planners working in the area.

The existence of this thread does not imply a waiver to Forums rule 2.11, which reads:

2.11 Single issue posters / one-trick ponies
The Forums are not intended to furnish people with a venue for single-mindedly promoting their personal agenda. Staff may ask users to limit or refrain from posting on a certain topic.

Cyburbia staff reserves the right to move the thread to another forum, or close it at any time.

Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey